5 Wits

5 Wits (sometimes stylized as "5 W¡ts") is an American design/build studio based in Attleboro, Massachusetts.
The company was founded in 2003 by Matthew DuPlessie, a former Disney Imagineer and graduate of MIT and Harvard Business School.
Origins and Tomb
Pioneering the idea of an "interactive, immersive walk through experience", the company opened its first adventure, "Tomb" as a proof of concept in 2004 in Boston near Fenway Park. Guests became archeologists exploring an ancient Egyptian pyramid. Once inside, the spirit of Pharaoh would appear and inform the new archeologists in order to survive they would need to work together and solve challenges based on the Shakespearian Five wits, and those who were truly worthy would be able to view his burial chamber. There were five rooms in total, each containing physical, mental, or logic puzzles for guests to solve in order to advance to the next room. The puzzles (or "interactives" as 5 Wits calls them) would automatically reset after each expedition, thereby allowing multiple groups of up to 15 people to experience the attraction at the same time with staggered starts. Additionally, the entire game could adjust it's difficulty based on a group's performance, becoming easier for groups that were struggling or moving too slowly, or vice-versa. Each expedition was accompanied by a guide (usually a local theatre student) who would help advance the storyline and assist groups if necessary.
Tomb closed in 2010. Today, it is running (although no longer operated by 5 Wits) in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee.
Current Installations
5 Wits Foxboro
In 2011, Five Wits opened two new adventures at Patriot Place near Gillette Stadium. Espionage is a spy-themed experience with guests ducking around lasers, cracking safes, and diffusing bombs, as they uncover a conspiracy theory. In 20,000 Leagues, guests rediscover, and try to find a way out of Captain Nemo's Nautilus. Both attractions are larger scale, consisting of 8 or 9 rooms, compared to Tomb's 5 rooms.
5 Wits Syracuse
In February 2014, 5 Wits will open its second location at Destiny USA in Syracuse, New York. This location is slated to offer new versions of Tomb and Espionage along with two additional, new adventures: one based in a medieval castle, and sci-fi adventure on a space station. The Syracuse adventures will not feature a live guide, guests will be on their own, with assistance from virtual characters within the games themselves. DuPlessie has stated this is both a method of keeping ticket prices down as well as being in response to guest feedback.
Operation Spy
Operation Spy is a guided interactive adventure at the International Spy Museum in Washington D.C.. The experience is similar to Espionage in Foxboro, although has a more historical and factual basis.
Museum Exhibits
On a smaller scale, 5 Wits has also created exhibits and interactives for the Boston Museum of Science, the Strong Museum of Play, the Smithsonian, among others.

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